Cromer - Town on the Decline

A few weeks ago, a man, whose name I forget, wrote in one of the local papers that Cromer was now nothing more than a collection of junk shops, and it's population was now nothing more than God's waiting room. As I read this, I found myself agreeing with him.

I have lived in the "Gem of the Norfolk Coast" all of my life, and for me, Cromer just seems to have lost it's sparkle. Maybe it's because I'm now 26, and no longer view the world with a youthful exuberance. Even the cinema, now a sort of small, multi-screen complex, seems to have lost it's character. Gone are the days when i could sit at the front of the balcony and watch the latest flick.

Now, as I walk through the streets of Cromer, I begin to feel sad. As well as the aforementioned shops, stocking nothing but junk, there are countless empty shops, some of which have been lifeless for years.

Once a year I make a point of climbing the steps of the church tower, getting a view, a virtual bird's eye view, of the town I grew up in, and I begain to think to myself - what's the point? For me, Cromer is nothing more than a shell of it's former self. If it wasn't for work commitments, I would break my ties with Cromer, sever my bonds with a town that for me has just lost it's sparkle.

But the question is, where would I go? Norwich, I suppose, the city I was born in. At least Norwich would be within easy travelling distance of most of my family. To me, family is everything, even if the rest of this family doesn't feel the way I do.

I'm sorry Cromer, but for me, you just don't have it anymore!